admin
Elton Manguwo
PLAYERS in the private sector have challenged farmers to upscale soya bean production saying doing so would set off a dominos effect in the creation of a vibrant soya bean value chain, as the country moves to attain feed, fibre and oil self-sufficiency.
In an interview recently, United Refineries Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr Busisa Moyo said the soybean value chain had potential to accommodate various agro-processing players through the backward and forward integration of the product’s lifecycle.
“The industry is open for occupation with gaps in research, production, marketing and consumption,” he said.
The country is looking to upsurge soya bean production from the current 80 000 tonnes to 100 000 tonnes, thanks to the good rains characterising this season on the backdrop of an increased hectarage.
“Ideally, as a nation we require close to 300 000 tonnes of soya bean to meet our demand, which creates room to accommodate more producers as the country guns for sustainability in the value chain,” said Mr Moyo.
In addition, soya bean is a critical raw material required by various agro-processing companies, as it can be value added to different products compared to other oil seed crops.
“Soya bean is needed in the livestock sector where it provides feeds for poultry, pigs, dairy and beef cattle and the aquaculture sub-sector,” said Mr Moyo.
In addition, the global consumption trends are shifting from animal to plant based products therefore soya bean represents organic produce rich in protein.
Foods made from soya beans can be divided into unfermented and fermented. Unfermented foods include – tofu, soya milk, soya nuts and sprouts while fermented soya products include miso, tempeh, natto and soya sauce.
The Government through its policy of binding the private sector to fund 40 percent production of its raw materials locally has been able to motivate key buyers to engage farmers for contract farming. This has enabled the country’s vision of transforming agriculture from being subsistence to business oriented through the ‘farm to industry’ interconnections.
“As a company we have developed clusters for contracting farmers to curb perennial importing of commodities that can be produced locally,” said Mr Moyo.
The Government is urging the private sector to participate in the key parts of the agriculture value chain as part of efforts to eliminate problems that frustrate food production and marketing every time.
“The country is graced with the right agro-ecological conditions for soya bean production, which presents opportunities for the wider populace to be part of the value chain,” said Mr Moyo.
The Government through the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development has always been playing a pivotal role in creating the conducive environment for the success of the agriculture sector through robust legal and policy instruments.
Online Reporter